113. FIVE EIGHT, 11/21/09

Venue: Smith's Olde Bar, Atlanta
Support: Author's Apology, Club Awesome
In the Company of: Eric W.


Five Eight Prove Themselves Once Again

It’s a common occurrence: Regional band with respectful amount of success just misses hitting it big. Disappears only to resurface several years later. Is it an act of desperation or a legitimate run? For the Athens, Georgia band Five Eight, it appeared to be legitimate at Smith’s Olde Bar in Atlanta Saturday night. Twenty years after their formation, the band sounds as relevant and fresh as ever. Singer/guitar shredder Mike Mantione seemed to channel Joe Cocker, Angus Young, and Frank Black simultaneously. Longtime bassist Dan Horowitz and drummer Patrick "Tigger" Ferguson round out the band. Both exceptional musicians in their own right.

The scene at Smith’s Olde Bar was not what a band wants to see, though. At its peak, the show entertained around 50 people. This may be attributed to a lack of PR for the show. If not for catching it in the local entertainment guide Creative Loafing, Most would not have heard. But word of mouth is a powerful thing. For those in attendance, we witnessed an impassioned plea for rock and roll by the band. They were on fire. Mantione, at times, seemed genuinely pissed that there weren’t more lucky listeners. As he began the first notes of one song, he said, “This is from our first one. You might as well come close, there are only twelve of you.” Nonetheless, the trio was undeterred, playing like a band possessed in front of a sold-out arena.

About halfway through the show, in an apparent attempt to show his frustration for Five Eight’s lack of a present fan base, Mantione livened it up. Just after starting a nice version of the Doors’ “The End,” Mantione stepped off the stage and smashed straight through a table where a sleeping blonde sat. Along with the table, a few chairs, and beer bottles galore, Mantione crashed to the floor. Not missing a chord, he returned to the mic, asking “Is everyone okay?” This was one of the funniest and most shocking things I’ve ever seen at a live show. And the blonde was now awake to enjoy the show. It was a win-win.

The band pulled from their six studio albums dating back to 1992, including I Learned Shut Up, Weirdo, and Gasolina! Check out Five Eight’s terrific songs on their My Space page, including “I’m Still Around,” “God Damn It Paul,” “Square Peg,” and “Weirdo.”

Throughout the evening, Mantione seemed to be creating the set list from his head. He began several songs while Horowitz and Ferguson looked at each other perplexed as to what this song was. And song after song, they figured it out and joined in seamlessly. With comparisons having been made to the Pixies, Dinosaur Jr., and the Replacements, Five Eight will pull you into their own style and sound and leave you wanting more. With a new album in the works and a scheduled New Year’s Eve gig with the Modern Skirts back at Smith’s Olde Bar, these guys will get another chance to show everyone they’re still around.

Opening the show was Atlanta’s own Club Awesome. This was a performance unto itself, as these guys brought catchy alt-rock to the sparse room. Club Awesome originated in 2004 as a self-proclaimed “Country-music Smiths cover band.” While I can actually hear them playing that way, their current thing is much better. With last year’s release Dynamos and an impressive live show, Club Awesome is forming a solid fan base with their post-punk musings and energetic sets. With tight, excellent musicianship, these guys should be around for quite some time. Definitely worth checking out.

On deck was Author’s Apology. While showing off their rock and roll chops with originals and nice covers of Billy Bragg and Elvis Costello, they lost something in the sound. It was simply too loud. The vocals were frequently lost in near distortion. Maybe it was the half-empty room (more warm bodies = more sound absorption). Either way, listeners deserve another chance to hear these guys.

R.E.M. Shine On New Live Recording

R.E.M., Live at the Olympia in Dublin
(Warner Bros Records)

The 39 songs from Live at the Olympia are an R.E.M. connoisseur’s dream. Not only do they take a homerun swing at the I.R.S. years (23 tracks), they also hit that homerun with their most vital and exciting live recording to date. Heck, nearly a third of the tracks are from their first three releases alone (Chronic Town, Murmur, Reckoning). This seems like a promise to R.E.M. fans that, with last year’s Accelerate, they’re returning to their glory days as the band that defined college radio.

When Mike Mills yells through a bullhorn in the beginning, “This is not a show!” he is letting listeners know that these five nights in Dublin are rehearsals…rehearsals for new songs on the upcoming Accelerate, as well as practice for the ensuing tour. Sure, one could argue that out of five nights of songs, they were sure to cull some great sounding music. But this music is beyond great…it takes the R.E.M. fans back to a time when the band was at the top of their game.

Michael Stipe, Peter Buck, and Mike Mills remain as originals (drummer Bill Berry retired in 1997). Ministry’s Bill Rieflin returns from the last album on drums and Scott McGaughey sits in on guitars and backing vocals.

For 2008’s excellent Accelerate, the Dublin audience was treated as lab rats, with nine of the eleven tracks that made the album played here. One title you may not recognize, “Disguised,” was later renamed “Supernatural Superserious” (“Everybody here, comes from somewhere / That they would just as soon forget, and disguise”) and released as the first single from Accelerate. The new songs are wildly accepted, as the Irish seem to agree with Americans: R.E.M. is back, reminding us how they elevated alternative music to an art form.

As the new accelerated songs are interspersed throughout the album, it mostly consists of what made R.E.M. great, which was the beginning. Songs from their initial independent EP, Chronic Town, shine here as four of the five are performed in a way unfamiliar to fans: Michael Stipe’s lyrics are intelligible. No longer do we hear the murmur that was their trademark in the early eighties. Each song is loud, crisp, and thrilling. I mean, who knew that Stipe was singing, “It’s been pretty simple so far, vacation in Athens is calling me / And knock, knock, knock on wood, I thought I’d left you behind” from Reckoning’s “Letter Never Sent”?

Standout tracks are clearly the Reckoning selections, especially “Harborcoat.” This song has always been a favorite of mine and is performed here with new life breathed into it. “Cuyahoga,” which Stipe admits to pronouncing incorrectly on Life’s Rich Pageant; “Feeling Gravity’s Pull” holds a special place in my heart, as it was the first live R.E.M. song I ever heard. They opened with it for their St. Louis show on the Fables of the Reconstruction tour in 1985.

Document’s “Welcome to the Occupation” is another bright spot in this already illuminated recording. The closer, “Gardening at Night,” shows how these lads from Athens, Georgia have matured and evolved since it was released in 1982.

Produced by Jacknife Lee, who was also at the helm of last year’s Accelerate, Live at the Olympia in Dublin showcases R.E.M. as alternative rock gods reborn. Diehard fans of the group will find a song or two that will be in heavy rotation on their iPod for years to come.

Sting Brings Bleakness and Beauty with If On a Winter’s Night…

Sting, If On a Winter’s Night…
(Deutsche Grammophon/Universal Music Classical)

Whenever musical artists stray from their customary paths, there is invariably an outcry from fans around the world. People, in general, fear change. They thrive in their comfort zones. But it is only with change that one can truly grow. Sting discovered this in 2006 with Songs From The Labyrinth, a medieval, lute-laden collection of tunes from the songbook of John Dowland (1563-1626). He created an album that was close to his heart because he could. Do we really want to hear “Roxanne” being regurgitated by Sting for the rest of his life? Not me.

So, it was in a similar vein that Sting has released If On a Winter’s Night…, his very first “holiday” record. Holiday is in quotes because Sting has expanded the idea into a collection of traditional winter songs from the British Isles covering roughly five centuries. This, in fact, is where he was born and raised as Gordon Matthew Sumner. At 58, Sting has deserved this journey of introspection and beauty.

The fifteen tracks on Winter’s Night are mostly made up of old English carols, lullabies, and traditional tunes. You may, however, recognize a couple of these. The lead off song is “Gabriel’s Message,” originally found on the Special Olympics charity album A Very Special Christmas (1987); and “Hounds Of Winter,” from Sting’s Mercury Falling (1996). Both have shed their pop-song sounds for a much folksier, personal arrangement.

Track five finds Sting singing the Robert Louis Stevenson poem “Christmas At Sea” (Lyrics by Stevenson, music by Sting). “Soul Cake” could possibly be considered the first single from Winter’s Night. It’s the closest to a pop song that exists on this album. Sting’s other offering is “Lullaby for an Anxious Child.” Other selections that may relate the general mood of the album are, “The Snow It Melts the Soonest,” “Cold Song,” “Now Winter Comes Slowly,” and the Bach inspired “You Only Cross My Mind in Winter.”

This music may remind us of cold, dark, and lonely winter days when the deafening silence forced your mind to look inward. However it affects you, Sting has once again followed his heart and created a wonderful collection of songs showcasing his musical aptitude through a deep gaze into his soul.